Skewer for bolting cloth



Oct. 27, 1959 L. H. HARTER 2,910,176

SKEWER FOR BOLTING CLOTH Filed Feb. 28, 1958 INVENTOR. Les/f2 H Haw/er .4 rroR/vEK United States Patent SKEWER FOR BOLTING CLOTH Leslie H. Hatter, Memphis, Tenn. Application February 28, 1958, SerialNo. 718,301

4 Claims; (Cl. 206- 50) This invention relates to the bolting and subsequent shipping and storing of cloth or fabric in bolt form, and refers more particularly to the construction and design of a unique skewer on which such cloth is wrapped to form the bolt.

As is known to those familiar with the manufacturing, finishing and merchandising of cloth or fabric, it is customary to roll or wrap the material upon itself in the formof bolts which usually contain twenty or more yards. In most cases the material is wrapped by suitable machinery on a core of paper board or the like. This core is known in the trade as a skewer and in the past has usually been constructed of rectangular pieces of heavy paper board, or the like put together, in the case of heavy fabrics, in ply to a thickness of /2 inch.

In certain types of material, however, the present practice of utilizing a flat, board-like skewer has posed serious difficulties. and heavy fabrics like corduroy, velveteen, and similar fabrics, the sharp break point presented by the edges of presently used skewers causes severe creasing of the material at the innermost winding of the bolt. This creasing is of considerable commercial importance. It renders unsalable the end-most yard or two yards of the bolt. As a matterof fact, cloth finishing houses (who process raw cloth, that is, cut, size, dye and bolt' it for the merchandising houses) have avoided promoting such fabrics as corduroy and velvet for the very reason that the losses due to creasing are sufliciently substantial as to keep the materials at a price too high for competition with other materials.

One of the primary objects of the present invention is to provide a skewer so constructed as to avoid the excessive creasing noted above, while still keeping the cost of the skewer itself at a price low enough to permit its commercial use.

Anotherimportant object of the invention is to provide a skewer of the character described which is so designed as to increase the ,positiveness and efficiency of wrapping when the cloth is being bolted in the conventional bolting machine. My skewer'is so constructed as to provide a positive attachment of the cloth to the tongs or blades of the wrapping reel of the bolting machine, the skewer at the same time being likewise secured to the blades to prevent its accidental removal therefrom. This assists the operators in preventing loss of time due to false starts and also promotes even winding of the bolts.

A further object of the invention is to provide a skewer which is so designed that it can be constructed of cheap and readily available materials, yet which is of sufficient strength as to survive extremely rough handling during shipping and storage. One' of the features of the invention resides in the manner of assembly of the device to take advantage of the greater resistance of wood to flexure about an axis normal to the grain than parallel with the grain.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a cloth bolting skewer which is so constructed as to in- For example, in the case of coarse 2,910,176 Patented Oct. 27, 1959 elude exposed surfaces capable of absorbing excess moisture, thus to protect the cloth during shipping and thereon under; tension without causing collapse .of the skewer. a

Other and'further objects of "the ,invention. together with the features of novelty appurtenant thereto will appear inthe course of the following description.

In the accompanying drawings which form a partof the specification and are to be read in conjunction therewith and in which like reference numerals indicate like parts in the various views,

Fig. l is a perspective view of the wrapping section of a conventional cloth bolting machine showing a skewer embodying my invention in position on the wrapping blades or tongs with the cloth'engaged in the recommended style between the skewer and tongs;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged transverse section through the skewer, the cloth and wrapping tongs being shown in broken lines for purposes of illustration;

Fig. 3 is an enlarged perspective view of the skewer alone, a portion of the paper veneer of one face being broken away for purposes of illustration. Referring to the drawingsand initially to Fig. 3,.'the preferred construction of a skewer embodying the invention includes a central panel 14 which'is preferably rec.- tangular. While this panel may be constructed of various materials, preferably it is composed of a thin paper veneered wood. I have found that ply veneer such as that used a greatdeal in packing cases provides a highly satisfactory panel. A thickness of from inch to inch is recommended, the optimum thickness being approximately 4; inch inthe case of the ply veneer. The width andlength of the panelwill, of course, vary ac cording to the dimensions of thebolt desired. The paper veneer 10a is adhered to the wood in the usual fashion, the paper normally being kraft paper The veneer is, of course, preferably on both faces of the panels; It will be observed that the long'edges 'of the skewer are constructed to be of greater thicknessthan the panel itself and thatthey are gentlyfrounded, to provide, a smooth, even surface having no sharpbreaks therein. In the preferred form of the invention this rounding is accomplished by laminatingto the panel the members 11, each of which preferably comprises a quarter-round of equal length with the panel and having a radius of at least three times the thickness of the panel. Each quarter-round 11 is so placed on the panel that its semi-cylindrical surfacella forms a lateral continuation of the edge 12 of the panel 10. Stated otherwise, the flat relatively narrow edge 12 on each side of the panel should be merged smoothly into the curvature provided by the opposed rounded surfaces of the members 11 so that a continuous even surface with no breaks is provided.

Preferably the members 11 are also formed of wood. To obtain the ultimate in strength the members 11 should have the grain of the wood running longitudinally. The

panel 10 on the other jhand should beso cut and oriented that it gives the necessary. strength to the skewer for the wrapping operation while still permitting a skewer of light weight.

Preferably the members 11 are separate pieces which are cut from a single cylindrical length. This is an important feature of the invention as it makes a cheap construction possible. The desirability of cheapness in construction cannot be over emphasized as it is the de terminant by which acceptance or rejection of skewers is measured by the trade. The separate pieces are arranged on the panel as previously described and preferably are secured thereto by nails 13 as illustrated in Figs. 2 and 3. The nails should, of course, be at leastfinsh'set and preferably they are recessed as illustrated.

Care must be taken to round off all corners and e:- posed edges of the members 11 so that the cloth at no point comes into contact with a sharply angled edge.

Provided in at least one of the members 11 on that face normal to the panel is a recessed or rabbeted groove 14 which forms with the face of the panel a U-shaped groove running lengthwise the full length of the skewer. The purpose of this groove can best be understood by referring now to Figs. 1 and 2.

Fig. 1 shows a portion of the wrapping section of a conventional bolting machine. Portions of the framework are indicated at 15 and 16 and a control clutch handle for starting and stopping the wrapping reel is indicated at 17. Supported by the framework is a rotary crosshead 18 which forms one end of the wrapping reel. Secured to the head 18 are spaced parallel blades or tongs 19. These blades are pivotally pinned at one end to the crosshead 18 by pins 20. The crosshead is provided with rows of perforations 21 to permit variations in spacing of the blades for different width bolts. The other ends of the blades are provided with notches 22 which fit with pins 22a carried by a second crosshead 23. The crosshead 23 is supported on the framework by a rotary shaft 24 to which the crosshead is splined. A spring 25 continually urges the pins 22a into the notches 22 so that under normal circumstances the blades are held firmly in spaced relation between crossheads 18 and 23. However, when it is desired to collapse the blades toward one another it is necessary only to retract the crosshead 23 against the influence of spring 25 thus to remove the pins 22a from the notches. The blades can then be swung toward one another since their connection with the other crosshead 18 is pivotal. It is this arrangement which permits removal of the bolt once the wrapping is completed.

No description has been made of the drive mechanism for the wrapping reel as it plays no part in the present invention.

A skewer according to the invention is shown assembled with the blades and with the end of a length 26 of cloth which has been unrolled and folded once onto itself during its course through the machine as is the customary practice in such machines. It will be observed that the dimensions of groove 14 and the spacing of the members 11 is such that with the outer edge of one blade 19 adjacent the ungrooved member 11, the other blade fits into groove 14 throughout the length of the latter. Thus the skewer is firmly keyed to the blades and cannot drop therefrom until the blades are collapsed in the fashion earlier described. It will be understood, of course, that installation of the skewer is made by initially positioning the skewer so that the groove 14 is adjacent one blade with the opposite element. 11 over the other blade. The skewer is then shifted laterally to enter the blade edge into the groove and permit the panel to be swung to a position parallel with the blades.

While not always necessary, the cloth can be firmly keyed within the groove 14 by first laying it across the blades and then installing the skewer in the fashion described above. Alternatively, the cloth can be merely laid between one blade and the confronting face of the skewer panel 10. As the.blade enters the groove it causes the face of the skewer to be brought into close proximity with the blades thus to clamp the cloth there between.

As has been earlier mentioned the size of the skewers will vary for each size bolt desired. Care must be taken in each case, however, to assure that the spacing between the members 11 is such that when the skewer is installed on the machine the outer. edge of one blade will lie closely adjacent the ungrooved member 11 while the outer edge of the other blade engages the base of the groove 14. In forming or'cuttingthe groove 11 I have found that the maximum tolerance from the dimensions of the bla'de itself should be fig inch. Otherwise the play permitted after installation will cause inefiicient operation during the initial stages of wrapping.

The paper veneer board is preferred for the panel 10 since the wood core provides the requisite structural strength, while the paper provides a porous moisture absorbent medium for taking up any excess moisture which might be present in storage or shipping compartments. The paper also gives the panel a smooth and non-tacky surface which assists materially in preventing damage to the cloth due to splinters and the like.

From the foregoing it will be seen that this invention is one well adapted to attain all of the ends and objects hereinabove set forth together with other advantages which are obvious and which are inherent to the structure.

It will be understood that certain features and subcombinations are of utility and may be employed without reference to other features "and subcombinations. This is contemplated by and is within the scope of the claims.

As many possible embodiments may be made of the invention without departing from the scope thereof, it is to be understood that all matter herein set forth or shown in the accompanying drawings is to be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1. A skewer for use in connection with a cloth bolting machine of the type having spaced parallel blades on which the cloth is wrapped to form a bolt, comprising a panel having at least two parallel edges, the width of the panel between said edges being greater than the normal spacing of said bars, members secured to said panel adjacent said parallel edges and increasing the thickness of said panel at said edges, each of said members formed so that each face of said panel is bounded by parallel projections extending along the length thereof, and a groove running lengthwise of the base of one of said projections and adapted to receive therein a portion of one of said bars thus to provide a means of keying said skewer to said bars.

2. A skewer as in claim 1 wherein said members comprise quarter-rounds of lengths equal to that of the panel, a pair of quarter-rounds being associated with each of said edges, the quarter-rounds in each pair having their rounded surface disposed to form a curved lateral continuation of the adjacent edge of the panel.

3. A skewer as in claim 1 wherein said panel is composed of wood, the grain of the wood running normal to the longitudinal axis of said quarter-rounds.

4. A skewer as in claim 3 wherein the quarter-rounds are of wood and the grain thereof runs parallel with the longitudinal axis.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 912,630 Taft Feb. 16, 1909 2,425,660 Ware et al. Aug. 12, 1947 2,442,115 Byers et al. May 25, 1948 FOREIGN PATENTS 356,839 France Dec. 9, 1905 

